


Grounded

by serpensyne



Category: TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Cute Huening Kai, Drunk Choi Beomgyu, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Huening Kai Is So Sweet, Kang Taehyun Needs A Hug, Kang Taehyun-Centric, M/M, Sweetheart Choi Beomgyu, Sweetheart Huening Kai
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 06:27:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29995263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serpensyne/pseuds/serpensyne
Summary: Beomgyu finally convinces a reluctant Taehyun to go to a party, and Taehyun has about as much fun as he thought he would, until he meets a boy with the prettiest smile he think he's ever seen.[Taehyun looked at him for a moment, and the first thing he thought of was 'damn he is cute'. The stranger had the prettiest face he had ever seen, really. His hair was a light curly brown, and Taehyun began to wonder what it would feel like to run his hands through it. 'What?' He blinked a few times, realizing he was silent for a little too long.]
Relationships: Huening Kai & Kang Taehyun, Huening Kai/Kang Taehyun
Comments: 1
Kudos: 40





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello !! this is my first fic ever, so please don't be too harsh on me! i really hope you enjoy it, and i would love feed back ;;
> 
> a little tw for alcohol and drinking!

Taehyun slammed his head against the calculus book he had been staring at for the last few hours. He decided he had finally reached his limit, and was giving up. The equations that he had been working on just got longer and longer and- _wait, when did that x variable get there?_ He groaned in frustration, sighing heavily as he glanced out the window in front of his desk. He didn’t know what time it was, and honestly he was too scared to check. It had to be at least a few hours past midnight by now by the fact he could feel his eyes sting with exhaustion. He hated wasting every single night working on homework that literally added nothing to his grades, but here he was, feeling his brain start to rot after accomplishing nothing.

It wasn’t exactly the perfect, life-changing first month of college that Taehyun had always imagined it would be. If he was being completely honest, he was exhausted and overwhelmed, and almost felt like getting on a bus and asking the driver _‘Hey I know it’s probably a few hundred miles, but could you take me back home? I can pay you back later!’_. Despite being accustomed to hefty work loads after being at the top of his class in high school, college was much different, and he wasn’t as good as handling it. Back then, he was in a ton of clubs and had a ton of friends that could balance out all of the work, and he always enjoyed it that way. But now, he was left all alone, having no friends and no one to do any of the work with. He wondered what changed, he didn’t quite fit in with everyone else like he used to. He sighed again, before closing the book and pushing it off to the side.

That wasn’t entirely the truth, he had some friends. Well, he had something close to that. His roommate, a music major named Beomgyu, constantly tried to get close to him, or rather just invited him out most of the time. Taehyun felt guilty constantly turning him down, but he wasn’t a party go-er, and he especially didn’t want to go if he knew no one there. Other than that, Beomgyu was fine. He usually left Taehyun alone, and was polite enough. He supposed it could have been worse, Beomgyu could have been rude and invaded Taehyun’s boundaries, he could have left messes everywhere for the other to clean, or even worse he could have snored. Taehyun didn’t think he could survive spending his entire first year of college with someone who snored. Luckily for him, Beomgyu was overall a great roommate.

Thinking about him made Taehyun remember how he asked if the blond wanted to go out tonight, and of course Taehyun said no. He stood up from his desk, running a hand through his hair. _I can’t keep doing this,_ he thought quietly to himself. He was alone and sad, and this was the exact opposite of what he wanted. He expected his first year to be fun, low-stress, and maybe even have a little romance. Currently, everything was the complete opposite. He wanted to bash his head against the wall, his hair was practically falling out from stress, and his love life was about as interesting as a nursing home. 

As if someone up above was sick and tired of hearing Taehyun complain to himself, his thoughts were interrupted as the door to his dorm opened. Beomgyu looked over to Taehyun and shot him a slight smile, before closing the door. Taehyun was sort of surprised, usually Beomgyu didn’t come home from whatever he did, so he usually had Friday nights to himself.

“What are you doing up so late?” Beomgyu quickly took off his jacket, throwing it over the couch. “You look like shit.” He giggled.

_I could ask you the same thing,_ he thought. _And I do not._ But it was true, he could feel the bags under his eyes grow with every minute he stayed awake. Opting out from a full blown conversation, he sat down on his bed, sighing once more. “Homework.”

Beomgyu nodded, kicking his shoes off and throwing himself onto his bed, stretching with a light grown. Taehyun hoped that would be the end of their short convo, but unfortunately Beomgyu pressed on.

“You know, you wouldn’t be bothering me at all if you came. If that’s what you think, that is.” He sat up, glancing over at Taehyun.

Taehyun laughed, a laugh that sounded almost bitter but also sort of sad. “Well, I didn’t think that until you just said it.” He rolled his eyes. “I just don’t like parties.” He shrugged, but Beomgyu seemed unconvinced.

“You always say that, but have you ever gone to one? Maybe you’d have more fun than you think you would.”

Taehyun bit his bottom lip, before turning away from him. He didn’t want to spill his guts to his roommate right now, especially one he wasn’t extremely close with. Maybe it was the fact that it was probably three am and he wasn’t thinking clearly, or maybe that Beomgyu genuinely seemed like a nice guy who wanted to be friends with Taehyun. He sighed once more, something he did a lot lately, and then turned back to Beomgyu, although looking at the ground. “I just don’t want to make a fool out of myself.” He said softly. “I don’t know anyone here, besides you, really, and I don’t want to bring your night down, either. It’s not fair to you.”

Beomgyu’s eyes widened a bit, before he smiled. “Taehyun, you would never burden me, if that’s what you think! I already told you that. And, about embarrassing yourself, it’s almost like a college right of passage to do stupid shit at a party at least _once_.” He giggled softly, before brushing his bangs out of his forehead. “I really, genuinely want you to come, or else I wouldn’t ask!”

Taehyun’s face warmed up at this, and he honestly didn’t know what to say. _Why was he even being so nice? He never did anything for Beomgyu, why did the other boy care so much?_ He broke his gaze from the floor and met Beomgyu’s eyes, who was smiling brightly at him.

“They aren’t so bad, and if you’re worried about not knowing anyone, I’ll stay by your side the whole night, I promise.” Beomgyu continued. “Just come once, pleeease?” He pleaded. “And if you really don’t have a good time, I’ll do your calculus homework for you for a week.” Now, Taehyun was interested.

He laughed at his offer. “A whole week..? Are you sure?” Beomgyu was arguably even worse at calc than Taehyun was, but the gesture was nice.

“Yes, I’m that sure you’ll have a good time!” Beomgyu beamed. “So, what do you say? Tomorrow night you have to come out with me, and have an open mind. Alright?”

He wasn’t sure why Beomgyu was so persistent, he didn’t know why he cared so much. But Taehyun nodded along and agreed. “Fine, I’ll go.”

“Great! Amazing!” He smiled and was basically doing a victory dance while sitting in bed. “I swear, you’re going to have such a good time you won’t know what to do with yourself.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes, before laying back in his bed. “Fine, okay.” He couldn’t help himself by laughing. “Can we just sleep? I’m exhausted.”

Beomgyu nodded and moved to shut the lamp next to his bed off. “Beware, Kang Taehyun. You are going to have the time of your life tomorrow, if it’s the last thing I can do for you.” Taehyun let out another giggle, before turning his body to sleep.

_I believe you,_ he thought to himself before he peacefully drifted off to sleep.

To be fair, this was Taehyun’s first party. Well, his first _college_ party. It wasn’t his fault he had no idea what to wear, or what to do with his hair. But judging by the look on Beomgyu’s face, he did everything wrong.

“Dude, it’s just a lowkey party. No need to dress like it’s a funeral.” He snorted, before dragging Taehyun to his dresser. “You really are a lost cause..”

Taehyun flushed at this, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms. “I didn’t know.” He glared at Beomgyu. “You could have helped, you know.”

Beomgyu rolled his eyes right back at him. “Well, luckily for you, I’m helping now! Consider me your fairy godmother,” he pulled out a pair of jeans and a light flannel, “because I am going to make you look like an actual college student.” He handed the clothes to Taehyun. “Put on one of your sweatshirts and then this, and then you’ll look like a normal human. And brush your hair out of your face, show a little forehead.”

Taehyun rolled his eyes again, before grumbling. “Fine, fine.” He walked over to the bathroom, before turning back to Beomgyu. “Thanks.”

He shrugged, smiling. “It’s no big deal. You said you didn’t want to make a fool of yourself, it’s the least I could do.” He winked, and Taehyun wanted to smack the smug look off his face.

The walk from their dorm to the place the party was at was only about ten minutes, and chatting with Beomgyu made it a little more bearable. He was glad he told him to wear a sweatshirt, because the night was a little colder than usual. Despite Beomgyu constantly reassuring him that, _no Taehyun, you won’t burden me,_ and _yes Taehyun I promise I won’t leave you alone,_ he couldn’t help but worry that something was going to go wrong. 

He didn’t have any more time to think about it when they arrived at the door of what seemed to be a frat house. Beomgyu turned back to Taehyun, beaming at him. “Are you ready for the best night of your life?” 

Taehyun shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. “I’m ready for a night of my life, I’m not sure it’ll be the best yet.” Beomgyu rolled his eyes, before punching him in the shoulder. “Hey!”

“You said you would keep an open mind. You need to be open to having fun if you’re going to have a good time!” He crossed his arms. 

Taehyun sighed. “I will. I am. I’m just... nervous, I guess.” 

Beomgyu smiled again. “Well, don’t be.” And with that, he turned back to the door, and gave a hard knock. 

After a few moments, the door opened and a boy with bright pink hair was standing there, and immediately lit up when he saw Beomgyu. “Finally!” He said, practically pulling Beomgyu inside, with Taehyun tailing behind. 

“Yeonjun, this is Taehyun, my roommate.” He pointed to Taehyun, grinning between the two. “And Taehyun, this is Yeonjun.” Taehyun gave him a kind nod, standing behind Beomgyu.

“Oh, you’re Taehyun!” Taehyun had never seen someone smile so bright, and he was roommates with Beomgyu. “I’ve been dying to meet you, really. Gyu here has been trying to get you to come out with us for, like, ever.” And then Taehyun felt guilty again, laughing nervously. “He always mentions how busy you are, but-”

“Yeonjun.” Beomgyu rolled his eyes. “It doesn’t matter, he came out now! Now, stop being weird.” He elbowed Yeonjun.

“I’m not being- ow!” He shoved Beomgyu back and then the two started laughing together. They started talking about something, he wasn’t too sure what exactly, Taehyun stopped paying attention as he felt anxiety creeping in.

Taehyun felt out of place already, around people who seemed to get along better than him. He looked around, crossing his arms. He could hear the music and tons of talking and laughter from what seemed like the living room. He glanced down the hallway into a room which seemed to be the kitchen, and saw a few people mingling. He swallowed hard, already worried about who he would meet and if they would like them or not. Yeonjun was hardly an indication of how everyone else would react to him, being one of Beomgyu’s friends it seemed like. What if he meets someone and they hate him and curse him out in front of everyone and-

“Taehyun?” Beomgyu snapped his fingers in front of his face, bringing him back to reality. “You okay?” He said almost in a hushed whisper, not like it mattered when Yeonjun was just inches away.

“Yeah. Sorry. I’m fine. Great even.” He smiled nervously, and then put his hands in his pockets. “Sorry.” 

Beomgyu gave him a confused look. “...Alright. Anyways, Yeonjun was just telling me about how they were just about to start playing beer pong. You in?” 

“I’m not really a drinker.” Taehyun looked away from him, shifting back and forth on his feet. “But if you want to play I’ll watch.” He added quickly, turning back to face him.

“Are you sure? I want you to have fun too!” Beomgyu replied, frowning slightly.

Taehyun chuckled. “Yes, it’s fine. I want to see you destroy everyone else.” 

“Now that’s what I’m talking about! Let’s go!” Beomgyu almost skipped to the living room, pulling Taehyun along like he was attached by a rope.

Watching Beomgyu get drunk isn’t how he thought he was going to spend a good portion of his night, but here he was. Taehyun was sitting on a couch behind the beer pong table, and every time Beomgyu did something he would turn back to Taehyun for reassurance that he was winning, or something. Taehyun honestly didn’t understand the rules of this game or what the point was. All he could see is his roommate chugging down cups full of alcohol as if they were nothing. It wasn’t that boring… it could be worse. Oh who was Taehyun kidding, he was about to bash his head against the wall. He sighed, resting his head against his hand, watching Beomgyu continue to take shots. 

He was honestly just going to take a nap before there was a light tap on his shoulder, and he almost jumped. He looked besides him, and was greeted with a bright, but somewhat shy, smile. “Hi.” The boy said.

Taehyun looked at him for a moment, and the first thing he thought of was _damn he is cute._ The stranger had the prettiest face he had ever seen, really. His lips were pulled into a tight smile, his eyes full of life. His smile brought all his best features out. His hair was a light curly brown, and Taehyun began to wonder what it would feel like to run his hands through it. _What?_ He blinked a few times, realizing he was silent for a little too long. 

“Hey.” He replied nervously.

“Sorry if I’m bothering you at all, I just saw you basically falling asleep and wanted to say hi.” _God, this boy is too sweet._ “Is this your first time at one of these parties?”

“Is it that obvious?” Taehyun laughed and moved to face the boy a little bit more. 

“Oh no! I mean, well-” He stuttered a bit. “I’ve just never seen you before.” _Did his face just get a bit red?_ “I would have remembered seeing you.” Oh. _Oh._

Taehyun himself couldn’t help but blush at the compliment? Is that what that was? “Oh, well, yeah. You’re right, anyways. I’ve never gone before.”

He nodded and then held out his hand. “Well, it’s nice to meet you! I’m Huening Kai.” _Huening Kai,_ Taehyun thought. _Pretty._

“I’m Taehyun.” He shook his hand, smiling at him. He wasn’t sure really what to say next, he was never good at these things. He was scared it was going to get awkward, but lucky for him Kai was rather talkative.

“Taehyun.” He repeated. “It fits you!”

“Well, Huening Kai is a nice name too.” He grinned.

“Most of my friends just call me Kai. I think it’s because they’re lazy and don’t want to say the full thing.” He giggled and Taehyun doesn’t think he could ever get tired of that. “But, it’s nice to meet you.” Kai repeats, with the same friendly smile. Taehyun had never seen someone who held the stars in their eyes, but staring into Kai’s made it seem he was staring at century old constellations. 

“I think Huening Kai is a beautiful name. It suits you.” He blurts out, feeling like an idiot. He feels like his heart will explode when Kai’s face flushes a bright red. 

“Thanks.” Kai replies awkwardly, giggling nervously. Well, it was bound to get awkward eventually. 

Thankfully Beomgyu interrupted their conversation, walking over to the two. “Taehyun, you made a friend!” His voice was raised partly due to the alcohol, and just that he was excited. “Hi, I’m Beomgyu. You’re Kai, right? Soobin’s friend?” Of course Beomgyu already knew who he was.

“Uh, yeah, hello.” He nodded up to Beomgyu.

“Hellooo.” Beomgyu giggled a bit. Taehyun mentally face palms.

“Hi.” Kai looked over to Taehyun for some sort of help.

“Anyways, did you win?” Taehyun changed the topic. “It seems like you’ve drinken a lot. I don’t know if that means you won.” He said honestly.

“I’m not really sure either, but I know I kicked Yeonjun’s ass.” Taehyun laughed at Yeonjun’s _‘Hey!’_ from behind them. “But we are playing another round but we’re all out of beer, and since I drank most of it they are forcing me to go refill everything.” 

Taehyun rolled his eyes, and could notice Beomgyu’s soft rock back and forth. He was practically shit-faced. “I think you should sit down.” He stood up and pushed Beomgyu down onto the couch. “I’ll just go.”

“Are you sure? I didn’t want to leave you alone.” He whined, looking up at Taehyun.

“Yeah, it’s fine. I don’t mind.” He said.

“And I’ll go with him!” Kai spoke up. “I-If that’s alright with you, that is.”

“Oh, uh, sure.” Taehyun replied, and Kai stood up. “I just don’t want to leave him here, alone.”

“We can just force them to watch him.” Kai smiled and pointed to Yeonjun, who was in the middle of conversation with another person.

After forcing Yeonjun and Soobin, who he was introduced to by Kai, calling him _‘my best friend, like, ever’_ , to watch the drunk Beomgyu, they ventured off into the kitchen looking for more alcohol.

“Beomgyu seems nice.” Kai tried to start a conversation.

“Yeah, he is.” Taehyun wasn’t sure what else to say. It was true, at least. “He’s my roommate. He’s the whole reason I’m here tonight.”

Kai grinned. “I’m glad he forced you to come. Or else you wouldn’t have met me!” 

Taehyun chuckled at this. Kai walked a very thin line from being shy but also outgoing and confident, he would come to learn. “Good point.” 

They reached the kitchen and grabbed some beer from the fridge, Kai offering to take both cases but Taehyun reassuring him it was okay. The two walked back to the living room to find Beomgyu and Yeonjun arguing about something stupid, with Soobin quietly giggling along to both of their antics. Taehyun rolled his eyes then placed the beer on the table, with all of the other party go-ers thanking him. He walked back over to the bickering couple before looking back at Kai, who was following close behind him.

Taehyun honestly didn’t know what to make of any of this. First he spent his whole night bored out of his mind watching his roommate get drunk, and then this boy out of nowhere starts flirting with him? Is that what it’s called? He couldn’t quite tell, honestly because it didn’t happen that often to him, so he was sort of confused. Huening Kai was cute, and he was sweet from the few words that they said, but Taehyun couldn’t help but be awkward. He didn’t know what to talk about, especially with someone who was basically a stranger. He began to feel guilty again. 

What if Kai expected more out of him? Or rather, Kai thought Taehyun would be this interesting, hilarious larger-than-life person who would sweep him off his feet? A part of Taehyun knew he was being ridiculous, that it didn’t matter that much. It was just a college party, and who cares if the cutest boy he had ever seen was maybe flirting with him? He would probably never see him again, so it’s not like it mattered if he made a complete fool out of himself. Who cares if he ruined everything with the first person who has shown interest in him since high school? He surely didn’t.

Taehyun often wondered why he couldn’t just be normal and enjoy things. He wished he could just not think so much and have a good time. He was trying, but it never seemed to work. He wasted his whole night moping, and then when something interesting finally happens he makes everything awkward by how inadequate he feels. He wished he could be normal. He wished he could be better.

As if Kai could hear all his thoughts, he placed a hand on Taehyun’s shoulder, giving him a look that Taehyun couldn’t quite decipher. 

“Are you alright?” Kai asked. Taehyun didn’t even notice when he started breathing heavier, and when his hands started shaking.

“Sorry, yeah. I-I’m fine.” He said, embarrassed. 

“Do you want to go somewhere else?” Kai asked, his fingers rubbing soft circles against his shoulder. “Not in front of everyone.”

Taehyun nodded hesitantly, not really sure where the other was going to take him. Kai took the others hand and began to walk him upstairs, his grip tightening as they moved farther away from the party. They walked down the hall, and Kai brought him to a room, shutting the door behind them.

As Taehyun was calming down, Kai pulled him onto the bed, sitting next to him. “Are you okay now?” He asked quietly.

“Y-Yeah, sorry. I just…” He trailed off. “I don’t know.”

“You just seemed stressed is all, and I didn’t want you to like, break down in front of everyone or anything.” Huening Kai was sweet. Sweeter than Taehyun thought he deserved.

“Thanks. It means a lot to me.” He smiled sheepishly, and Kai placed a hand on his thigh. Taehyun’s face warmed up a bit, and he placed his hand on top of the others. “I never go to parties.” Kai stayed silent, letting the other speak as much or as little as he wanted to.

“I only said yes because Beomgyu wanted me to go so bad, I felt guilty saying no.” Taehyun looked away from Kai. “I don’t even drink so it’s not like I could just get drunk and try to forget about everything.”

“That wouldn’t be safe, either.” Kai replied, moving a bit closer.

“Good point. It wouldn’t. But...” he sighed, “I wanted to have fun.”

“Parties aren’t everything you know.” Kai smiled. “You can have fun doing other things, like going to get coffee, or reading at the library, or something. Not everyone likes parties, and that’s fine.”

Taehyun glanced back over to him, and softened a bit. He looked into Kai’s eyes, and smiled back at him, rubbing softly over his knuckles. “I know. You’re right. I shouldn’t force myself to do something I know I wouldn’t enjoy.”

“It wasn’t all bad though, you met me.” Taehyun could barely hear the other, as he whispered those words.

“You’re right. I’m sorry, though.” Kai looked confused. “I’m terrible at this sort of thing. I don’t know what to say or what to do, or if I’m being weird or not.” 

Kai laughed softly. “Taehyun, I think you’re cute.” Well he didn’t expect that. “Like, really cute. Like, oh my god I just want to squish your cheeks cute. Isn’t that weird? I don’t think you’re weird. If you’re weird then I’m unsavable.” Kai teased, and Taehyun blushed deeply. 

“I think you’re cute, too.” Taehyun said, before resting his head against Kai’s shoulder. “I’m much better company when I’m somewhere I’m used to. You should, uh, come over my dorm sometime. We can like, study, maybe.” Kang Taehyun might be the smartest idiot the world had ever seen.

“Only if you buy me take out. Everything comes with a price!” He teased again, and Taehyun rolled his eyes, before sitting back up. “I want to get to know you more, though. Somewhere you’re more comfortable.”

“You’re really sweet.” He finally said. 

“I’ve been told that I’m teeth-rotting-ly so.”

Taehyun smirked, before resting against Kai again. 

“I’ll give you my number, and then we can plan something.” 

“Sounds good.” Taehyun didn’t feel like worrying anymore. Being with Kai was sort of strange, but not in a bad way. 

Despite just meeting him tonight, spending time with Kai just felt normal. And he felt like they had known each other forever. He reminded Taehyun of home. He knew it was ridiculous, but it still made him smile.

After all, he was still upset about one thing.

Beomgyu was right. He did end up having a good time. So much for that calc homework.

Beomgyu would have probably done it wrong, anyways.

But who knows, maybe Kai was a math genius?

He wanted to learn everything there was to know about Huening Kai.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i've been working on this for so long, and i'm honestly just sort of stuck with it. i'm not entirely proud, i wish i could go back and edit it and make it flow better. but honestly, i'm just bad at dialogue and progressing the story along. despite that, i hope it was enjoyable! i might write a part two, but this was intented as a one-shot. it feels sort of rushed, and i want more development of their relationship. let me know what you think!
> 
> while i was writing this, i kept switching between listening to rollin' by brave girls, and then on the ground by rosé, and since i sort of think on the ground fits better with how huening kai made taehyun feel, i ended up titling this after on the ground. 
> 
> anyways, like i said, i could love feed back !! and i really hope you enjoyed <3


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite how perfect everything seemed, sometimes Taehyun needed to be reassured he was worthy of being loved.
> 
> [“You’re so much more than you think you are, Taehyunnie.” He grinned. “And you deserve this. You deserve something good. And, I want to be that for you. I really, really, really, like you. I would say it a million more times for you to believe me.”
> 
> After being left in silence, Taehyun swallowed hard. “Can I… can I kiss you?”]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> at this point this whole chapter is just drabble. i just wanted to have a more clearer ending and try to develop their relationship more
> 
> with that being said, i hope you enjoy!

Everything about Huening Kai was easy. Being with him and spending time together was easy. Falling in love with him and caring for him was easy. Taehyun wouldn’t ever outright blatantly say the words, at least not yet, but their relationship was something that he had never experienced before. Usually, his relationships were difficult, and he found comfort in defining lines and boundaries. But with Kai, everything was different. He didn’t care so much where the lines between friendship and something more blurred, and he didn’t mind how slow they were taking it. For once, Taehyun felt like he could breathe. He felt like there wasn’t any rush for anything, just being together was enough. Taehyun was enough for Huening Kai, and Huening Kai was enough for Taehyun. They fit and worked perfectly.

It had been a few weeks after the party that he was dragged to, and things were better. They weren’t great, he was still struggling in some classes, but he found himself not struggling alone. He didn’t waste so many of his nights alone because now he had someone else to spend them with. Funny enough, Kai actually was good at math and was basically helping the other in any way he could. He would come to find that Kai was good at many,  _ many, _ things. Kai was actually a music major, specifically in vocal performance, and once Taehyun found that out he begged the other boy to sing for him.

“Come on! I just want to hear you. Just once?” Taehyun pleaded. They were sitting on the couch of Taehyun’s dorm, under a blanket, leaning into each other. The two were watching some TV show, and something about the plot had to do with singing, and Kai let it slip he sang too.

“It’s embarrassing, Hyunnie.” He whined, and Taehyun smiled at this. He loved the nicknames Kai had given him as they got closer. It was something only they shared together, which made it so much more special.

“It’s not embarrassing, I bet you’re so good. Just one song? One verse? Please?” He mustered the biggest, most puppy-dog eyes he could, his hands clasped together as he stared Kai down.

“Right now?” He blushed, looking away from Taehyun.

“It doesn’t have to be now. I just want to hear you at some point.”

“Fine, j-just not now.” He turned back. “I’ll sing for you, I promise.”

“You better not forget! I sure as hell won’t.” He poked at Kai’s side, causing him to giggle.

“I won’t, I won’t!” He laughed, before resting back against Taehyun’s shoulder. “I’ll put on the best show just for you.”

Despite his words being seemingly meaningless, he flushed at the connotation and the implication that, again, this was something special they shared together. “I’ll be waiting.” And with that, they went back to watching.

Not only was his relationship with Kai developing, he actually grew closer to his roommate, as well. After that night at the party, Taehyun had explained why he hated parties so much, and was grateful at how understanding and caring Beomgyu was. He apologized for pushing him to go out, but Taehyun reassured him that it was okay, and as much as he didn’t want to admit it, it actually turned out to be one of the best nights of his life.

From that point forward, he started hanging out with Beomgyu more as well. They spent some nights getting coffee and studying together. Most of the time Kai or Yeonjun would join them, or on special occasions Kai would drag Soobin along and they all would hang out. It was different, but it was perfect. Taehyun was finally warming up to those around him and they all had gotten closer. It took him a while to open up entirely, but after all he thought he was a fool for ever doubting any of them. They understood him, or at least made an effort to, and that was enough. They never pushed or prodded, never made him feel uncomfortable. They all clicked, and that’s all he could have asked for.

Whenever Taehyun got a little too overwhelmed, or he couldn’t handle it alone, Kai was suddenly always there to soothe his worries. It was nice, but over time he started to feel guilty. He felt bad for constantly craving the others attention, but Kai told him he didn’t mind spending time together. Even though Kai reassured him that he didn’t mind helping with homework, or coming over to just hang out, Taehyun couldn’t help but feel nothing but guilt. All of these feelings culminated one night when Beomgyu was over at Yeonjun’s dorm, and Taehyun was freaking out alone. He texted Kai to see if he was awake, and begged him to come over. Taehyun sat on his bed, worried that he had woken Kai up and was wasting his time. Lucky for him, Kai responded immediately with  _ ‘I’ll be there in five’. _

Arriving a minute early, and with a light layer of sweat, (Taehyun assumed he ran here. God he didn’t deserve him.) Kai sat next to Taehyun without saying anything. He didn’t want to push him. Eventually, Taehyun looked up at him with a somewhat upset expression.

“I’m sorry.” He finally broke the silence.

“Wh- huh? What do you mean?” Kai was puzzled.

“I keep doing this to you. It’s not fair.” 

Kai really didn’t understand. “What are you talking about?”

“I should be able to handle my problems on my own. But…” He sighed. “I can’t.”

“Oh, Taehyun.” Kai frowned, before moving closer to him. “I really don’t mind, I’ve told you this. I…” He trailed off, before brushing a piece of Taehyun’s hair behind his ear. “If anything, I’m happy you trust me to be this open.” He smiled.

Taehyun blushed against his touch, leaning into it. He hated being so honest, but with Kai it didn’t seem so hard. “You’re too good for me, Kai.” 

Kai frowned again, before pouting. “That is not true. Don’t ever speak like that again.” He sounded overly serious, and Taehyun blinked a few times, scared he said something extremely wrong. “You never burden me.” Boy did this sound familiar. Despite how many times he told himself this, he couldn’t believe it. Whether it be with Beomgyu or Kai, or anyone really, he still felt bad for supposedly ‘wasting their time’. 

“I know.” He said, sounding unconvinced. “But, sometimes I worry.”

“Well… stop it.” Kai rolled his eyes. “I don’t know how I can prove to you that you never bother me. I mean, if I really was annoyed I wouldn’t come see you at midnight to make sure you’re okay. I’m here because I lo-” Kai stuttered, blushing a bit. “...because I care a lot about you, Hyun.” Taehyun caught his slip up, biting his lip. Did Kai really almost tell him he loved him? “I care about you so much, I worry too. I worry about you all the time, actually.”

“Really?” Taehyun looked at him, not really knowing what to say.

“Yes. I worry if you’re eating well, if you’re overworking yourself, if you are sleeping enough. I worry because I care, and I care because you’re really special to me.” Oh wow. All the unspoken works were finally being spoken. “I’m not close like this with anyone else, even Soobin, and we’ve been friends forever. This is different.  _ You’re  _ different.” Taehyun couldn’t help but blush again. Kai really was so much more brave than he could ever be.

“You’re so much more than you think you are, Taehyunnie.” He grinned. “And you deserve this. You deserve something good. And, I want to be that for you. I really, really,  _ really _ , like you. I would say it a million more times for you to believe me.” Kai placed his hand on Taehyun’s thigh, closing what was left of the distance between them. 

After being left in silence, Taehyun swallowed hard. “Can I… can I kiss you?” He whispered, feeling much more confident than he had been before. Kai nodded slightly, looking down at Taehyun’s lips.

Like everything else, kissing Kai was easy. Pressing his lips against the other, placing a hand on his cheek and being under Kai’s warm touch felt normal. It felt good, much better than he expected. But at the same time, it wasn’t the fireworks exploding, world stopping kiss he had always thought of. This kiss was so much better than that. It was better than anything he could have dreamed of. 

As quickly as it began, he pulled away, left staring into the others eyes. There was nothing that needed to be said anymore. He smiled at Kai, before giggling a bit.

“I’m stupid.” He chuckled, leaning against the taller boy.

“You’re not stupid. And even if you were, it would be another thing I like about you.” Kai kissed his cheek.

As easy as loving Kai was, there would always be some roadblocks in the way. Sometimes Taehyun would get insecure and Kai would have to show him how worthy of being loved he was. No relationship was perfect, but being with Kai was pretty close.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well, if i'm being honest, i wasn't sure how to finish this! it's my first so i know it's not the best but i just wanted to finish this and post it. i wish i had explored taehyun and his struggles more personally, but i didn't want to get extremely serious either. but honestly huening is just too sweet, and i'm satisfied with how i ended things.
> 
> well i really hope you enjoyed, and feedback/comments/kudos would really be appreicated!
> 
> also if anyone has any prompts or things they would like to see, feel free to comment, i would love to write more! thank you again <3


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